Swiftech today announced the release of the Apogee Drive II, a CPU waterblock featuring an integrated pump. "Like a phoenix rising from its ashes, the Apogee Drive II returns to take its place at the helm of Swiftech's CPU waterblock product line and it includes all the latest and greatest technological advancements that we have to offer today" said Gabriel Rouchon Swiftech's Chairman and CTA.

Derived in general concept from the company's Apogee Drive initially released in 2007, the Apogee Drive II much differs from the original in terms of its execution. The original was conceived as a moderate cost unit, using plastic injection molding for its body, the entry-level MCP350 pump and it came with bare essentials. In contrast, the Apogee Drive II is conceived as a luxury vessel: its uses the PWM controlled MCP35X, Swiftech's most powerful pump to date, a precision CNC machined water-block body that lends itself to easy upgrades for future socket form factors, adjustable inlet and outlet ports, a heatsink to further cool the pump, LED illuminated logo in a choice of 3 colors, braided cables, and the company's now famous retention system. The only concession to cost and waste-cutting measure the company made was to not bundle all the retention systems into one SKU, and to make 3 separate product versions.

According to the Company's own benchmarks, the Apogee Drive II edged the current Apogee HD in thermal performance, which is no small feat considering that the HD is currently hovering at the top of the world's performance charts. Given the considerable headroom afforded by the pump, uses for this type of device span across the entire spectrum of the high-end liquid cooling arena, but will particularly please system builders with space-constrained applications. The initial SKU being released is compatible with Intel CPUs using socket LGA 775, 1155 and 1366. Two more versions are expected to be released in June: a version compatible with Intel socket LGA 2011, and one compatible with all current AMD processor sockets.

OneCool said:$150 for a single waterblock ....... somebody is smokin crack over there :slap:

I'm not sure you even bothered to read the OP.:slap:

The block consists of a 35X pump as well. Let's see: A Swiftech Apogee block would run you $70, and an MCP-35X goes for $90 at the cheapest, most retailers sell it for $99.95. That's $170 if you bought the parts by themselves. Considering this block encompasses both, with new tech, and is $20 cheaper...

The block consists of a 35X pump as well. Let's see: A Swiftech Apogee block would run you $70, and an MCP-35X goes for $90 at the cheapest, most retailers sell it for $99.95. That's $170 if you bought the parts by themselves. Considering this block encompasses both, with new tech, and is $20 cheaper...

+1. Swifttech says this about that:

When considering the cost of purchasing an MCP35X pump ($99.95)+ an Apogee™ HD ($74.95), the total cost at MSRP is $175; compare this to the $140 MSRP of the Apogee™ Drive II (average of three models), this is a $35 or 20% saving.

The block consists of a 35X pump as well. Let's see: A Swiftech Apogee block would run you $70, and an MCP-35X goes for $90 at the cheapest, most retailers sell it for $99.95. That's $170 if you bought the parts by themselves. Considering this block encompasses both, with new tech, and is $20 cheaper...

Oh I read it.

Still WAY overpriced IMO.My old Koolance case with rad,pump,fans,cpu cooler,tubing etc... was only $200 brand new.

Still WAY overpriced IMO.My old Koolance case with rad,pump,fans,cpu cooler,tubing etc... was only $200 brand new.

Fair enough. Comparing Swiftech with Koolance is like comparing an Audi with a Yugo, but to each his own.

Animalpak said:Just enough for 1 x 120mm radiator, but now you can choose the thickness and the quality of the radiator you want...

Considering the 35X is the most powerful mainstream consumer grade pump you can buy - you would have to go with an exorbitantly expensive Eheim or comparable to get better performance - you can put as many rads and blocks with it as you wish. I have 600mm worth of rad with three blocks on mine with tons of power to boot.

MT Alex said:Fair enough. Comparing Swiftech with Koolance is like comparing an Audi with a Yugo, but to each his own.

Considering the 35X is the most powerful mainstream consumer grade pump you can buy - you would have to go with an exorbitantly expensive Eheim or comparable to get better performance - you can put as many rads and blocks with it as you wish. I have 600mm worth of rad with three blocks on mine with tons of power to boot.

Yes, I agree, I have two Laing DDC500 on parallel and the head pressure they yield is scary.

Anyway not to be a Koolance fanboy, years ago I would never touch any of their products but today they are almost comparable to Swiftech, their quality has really step up.